textproduct: Quad Cities

KEY MESSAGES

- Below normal temperatures will remain through the end of the week, with temperatures trending up this weekend and beyond. Much of the area may see temperatures at/above freezing by midweek!

- Dry forecast remains in store for the remainder of the week, with increasing chances for precipitation Sunday and into the next work week.

SHORT TERM /THROUGH FRIDAY/

Issued at 240 AM CST Thu Jan 29 2026

Wave passing south of the area will keep clouds draped over much of the area through the day, gradually decreasing in coverage from north-south this afternoon and evening. Surface winds will remain light and out of the north today through Friday, with overall quiet weather. Daytime temperatures will remain in the teens throughout the area, with nights in the single digits. Tonight will be one to monitor, as areas in our north may see wind chills as cold as 15 to 20 below zero. While winds will remain light, temperatures should drop off quickly in our north tonight due to clearing skies. Thus, they will have the best chance to see lows in the negatives, which can result in near-headline wind chills. At this time, confidence remains low on the necessity of a Cold Weather Advisory. We will continue to monitor temperature trends this afternoon/evening and evaluate if any headlines will be necessary. In either case, it will be very cold once again tonight into tomorrow AM. Thus, bundle up if out and about, as well as for the Friday morning commute. Friday will feature similar weather, with temperatures in the teens and light northerly winds. We will see some passing clouds as well on Friday, but may be more scattered-broken, allowing more sun to filter in for the end of the week.

LONG TERM /FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY/

Issued at 240 AM CST Thu Jan 29 2026

Not much change to the extended forecast since the last package, as we continue to advertise a more active pattern setting up and a warming trend. Although, more active doesn't necessarily mean a lot of precipitation, but we do have a couple opportunities at this time, which guidance has been consistent with. We will have a couple waves move through the area, which will introduce low- end PoPs to the area (20-40% chances). Weak ridging will be seen ahead of these waves, especially early next week. With that, we will see some warm advection work into the area. While we will see some moisture increase, we will still be relatively low on moisture throughout. Thus, any precipitation with these passing systems should be light and scattered in coverage, rather than widespread. This is highlighted through WPC QPF, generally highlighting the area for 0.10" or less of QPF. Looking at guidance, temperature profiles would favor the precipitation type as snow. Thus, light snow will be possible. Timing of these systems hasn't changed much, with the first system coming through Sunday, then the other Tuesday into Wednesday. One change that was noted for the second system is a southerly shift of the track in some long range models, which would keep the better forcing/moisture south of the area. If that is the case, PoPs may trend downward for the midweek system.

Temperatures will also increase as a result of this pattern, bringing us back towards seasonal norms. For reference, we will start to see temperatures 10-20 degrees warmer than they were over the last week. The very cold air that was in place was well below normal. Now, much of the area will see temperatures at/above freezing by the middle of next week. Prior to that, we will see a gradual increase in high temperatures each day. This will be a welcomed relief to the bitter cold that we have seen lately, especially with nighttime temperatures forecast in the teens! The upper level pattern looks to remain active through next week, as a rex block-like feature sets up over the west coast mid-late next week. If this block were to set up, we will generally stay in a northwest flow regime, leaving us near the path of potential clipper systems during the second half of next week.

AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z THURSDAY/

Issued at 1057 PM CST Wed Jan 28 2026

VFR conditions will prevail through the TAF period, with passing mid- high clouds. Winds will vary from north slightly, but will largely remain northerly at 5-10 KTs. Otherwise, no sig wx is expected at this time.

DVN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

IA...None. IL...None. MO...None.